Jameis Winston threw for 277 yards and two touchdowns against Syracuse during last year’s game. / Melina Vastola/USA Today Sports

Written by

Perry Kostidakis

Sports Editor @perrykos

Florida State and Syracuse, despite having only faced off as ACC foes once, have a decent history between them. The two schools first played against each other in 1966, which coincidentally was the last time that the Orange won against the Seminoles. They played a few times in the 1980s and 90s and then faced off again in 2004 and 2005 before last year’s 59-3 victory.

Last year was an absolute domination in favor of FSU, as was most of the games the Seminoles played in last year. A field goal late in the fourth quarter prevented a shutout, but that didn’t change the fact the ’Noles still doubled Syracuse in terms of total yards (247 to 523) and passing yards (104 to 298) and came close in rushing yards (143 to 225).

“I love my kids, I love our players, but they (Florida State) are a good looking bunch,” Syracuse head coach Scott Shafer said following the game. “They are as good as they are supposed to look and better. They look like an NFL team out there, personnel wise. They have guys who don’t touch the field that are giants. That’s the sign of a good program and one helluva job by Jimbo Fisher and this staff.”

Of course, last year the Orange had to deal with replacing head coach Doug Marrone (now head coach of the Buffalo Bills) and quarterback Ryan Nassib (now on the New York Giants). In came Shafer and Terel Hunt, who this year is a senior. This year, Syracuse will have more experience to back up the talent that is present.

“I don’t like to say we’re going to be the best team in college football,” senior linebacker Sean Hickey said at the 2014 ACC Football Kickoff. “I’m not going to sit here and say that. But I do believe we are a better roster than we were last year. We have the same system as last year, and we bring most guys back. So that should translate to more success, and we’ve worked very hard.”

The game takes place in early October, which means by then Syracuse will have already faced early tests in Louisville and Notre Dame. According the NCAA’s formula for strength of schedule, the Orange have the eighth-hardest schedule in the nation.

“The goal is to get better each season. That’s why we start off by saying we want to win eight games,” Shafer said on the radio show “Upon Further Review”. “Ultimately, we want to win an ACC championship, and that’s the goal and we want to do that with kids graduating. That’s where the bar set is right now.”

If Syracuse is going to make an improvement on last year, the offense will be the first place to start. The Orange ranked 105th in passing yards (182 per game) and 100th in points scored (22.7), much due to Hunt’s 60 percent completion rate. Leading rusher Jerome Smith has moved on to the NFL, taking his 840 yards and 11 touchdowns with him. Senior Tyson Gulley, who rushed for 456 yards in 2013, will be tasked with replacing him. Gulley has only 1449 and 14 touchdowns in his career, but his 2011 campaign was cut short due to injuries.

The defense will be Syracuse’s strong suit again in 2014, with a good number of players returning to a side that ranked 26th in rushing defense and 63rd in passing defense.